By now we have settled into the routine of our daily lives. Many who made New Year’s resolutions are resolving that next year will be the year they will keep them. Some are looking at their waistline and gauging just how much they enjoyed the holiday season. They convince themselves they will start working out…tomorrow…which never seems to come. Change is hard even when the intentions are good. There are plenty of books and formulas on how to stick with something or make a change that will last. However, it seems like the only person it works for is the friend who visits the neighbor who you only meet once. That person always seems to get it right. The rest of us keep piling on the good intentions and hope that one day our will power will be strong enough to change us.

But I am a Christian. Change should be easy. We talk about transformation. We talk about a new life. The Apostle Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 5:17: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”

Change should be a piece of cake. My best intentions should be realized. Yet, those inside the church seem to wrestle with the same issues. The only person who was really changes is the traveling speaker who we heard once. That person’s change was so profound they were able to start a whole ministry around it. The rest of us keep piling on the good intentions and hope one day change will happen.

As we finish packing up our Christmas decorations, we need to remember we celebrated. John 1:17 says: “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.”

When Jesus came and lived with us, I believe he brought the power of change. It rests in the duel power of grace and truth. The more I mature and see change in my own life, the more I am convinced of this reality.

Truth is powerful. It helps us have an honest assessment of where something is at. It gives us a clear picture. We see things as they are. Truth can be very painful to look at. Sometimes too painful. So, we minimize it, ignore it or turn it into a weapon we use to beat ourselves or others up with.

In steps grace. It is sweet and refreshing. Hope runs alongside it. It lifts us up. It encourages us. It believes in us. Ultimately it creates a safe area around truth so I can face it and deal with it effectively. Grace truly is a gift of God.

The law that came through Moses was a picture of truth. Jesus is truth (John 14:6). When you study the life of Jesus, you see those who were self-righteous (trying to be their own truth) were silenced. Those who had been broken by the truth of their life received grace. In the midst of that grace their lives were transformed.

Do you need change? How honest are you being about the situation? How much grace are you allowing into the situation?

You will have to sit down with God and really be willing to be open and honest. I will pick on Christians for a moment. This is where we tend to minimize or beat ourselves up. We start to look at the truth but then leap to the “right answer.” The best we can hope for is to become self-righteous. The worst is we will become hopeless never living up to that “right answer.” We must accept grace. Allow truth to be truth and let grace embrace us. Then something amazing happens. We start to live truthfully and grace guides us in changing. We really see change happen in our lives.

Now imagine this at work in the relationships around us. What if we were honest with one another and lived truthfully. Yes, we would need to give grace and live by grace and look for lots of ways to inject grace into all our interactions. You noticed I didn’t say by inserting grace we ignore the truth. Again, to pick on us Christians, this is what we tend to do. We pretend everything is alright when it is not. Truth and grace must go hand in hand. It is the only way it works.

Are you ready to change? What is the truth about the situation? What does grace look like? Remember Jesus is truth so you will need to start with him. He is also the one who offers us grace. For the church, we must be communities that live by the duel power of truth and grace. The world desperately needs it and so do we.